Ilyse Rathet and Ron Post spent much of the nineties living in Italy, exploring the countryside in search of local foods and wines. In an age of fast food, slow food was their focus, tradition and quality their guide. Each of Italy’s twenty regions produces distinctive specialties, many of them made by artisans too small and too regional to find without wandering from city to town, farm to market. They returned to Seattle in 1999 and started Ritrovo Selections, a select importer dedicated to bringing hard-to-find Italian regional delicacies to America.

DeLaurenti was one of their first customers. “Ilyse and Ron came into the shop to show us some products,” says DeLaurenti co-owner Matt Snyder. “Their passion for Italian products is unrivaled. They had so many wonderful foods from small producers you couldn’t find anywhere else. I remember tasting truffle salt for the first time, a product of theirs we immediately added and still carry. ”

Over the last twenty-plus years, Ritrovo has expanded its line of offerings, many of which DeLaurenti carries. Their love and passion for the foods that make Italy’s cuisine unique and the consistently impressive quality of each item show the carefully cultivated relationships they’ve built with small producers from the Italian Alps to Sicily.

Ritrovo has helped DeLaurenti develop a line of private label Extra Virgin Olive Oils and pasta sauces. “We would trust no one else with our private label since nobody has a better understanding of our store and customers than they do,” says Matt.

Whether you are looking for the best pesto to stock your pantry, great extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, or pasta sauces you can trust to impress your friends, we’ve got it—and the expertise of Ilyse and Ron at Ritrovo Selections has helped us continue to find and stock hand-crafted products from family-owned farms and artisanal producers.

Check out a few of our favorites:

Ritrovo Selections Basil Pesto: Most things are better when you make them yourself, but the best basil is not available 12 months a year. Made in Liguria, the birthplace of pesto, the ingredients in this sauce will seem hauntingly familiar: Ligurian basil, extra virgin olive oil, pine nuts and pecorino. Although it is perfect with any cut of pasta, try it the traditional way with trofie, haricot verts and halved baby red potatoes. Also great on a soft boiled egg or summer corn on the cob!

 

Ritrovo Selections Mixed Olive Salad: A delicious mix of Leccino, Nocellara del Belice, and Cerignola olives. Great for antipasti, parties and snacking!

 

 

 

 

Ritrovo Selections Squid Ink Tagliolini: This thin cut tagliolini is ideal for seafood pasta dishes and with olive oil or tomato based sauces. Black hued from the squid ink, it has a delicate marine flavor without being fishy.

 

 

DeLaurenti Private Label Sauces: Handpicked and with production overseen by Ritrovo Selections, our house sauces are all made in Italy with tomatoes grown and harvested on the farm where the sauce is made. You can count on them to elevate any pasta dish to a level of quality you’d expect at a trattoria in Rome or Florence.

DeLaurenti Lazio Riserva EVOO: This house olive oil is from the Colli Etruschi, a farm cooperative located near the Etruscan town of Blera in the province of Lazio. Made from late-harvest Caninese olives, it is silky and bold with a peppery finish. With aromas of fresh cut grass and lime, it is perfect for cooking, salad dressings or finishing grilled vegetables.

 

 

DeLaurenti Sicilian Riserva EVOO: Our house brand olive oil from Sicily! Estate produced and bottled in the Monte Iblei zone of southeastern Sicily, it is fruity and grassy with a hint of pepper on the finish. Made with 100% Tonda Iblea olives, it is perfect for salads, dipping and finishing grilled vegetables, meats and fish.

 

 

 

TRUFFLE BEAN SOUP

This flavorful and elegant bean soup combines heirloom beans with earthy truffle products. It’s perfect for lunch, a starter course, or evening meal served with salad and bread. (Adapted from a recipe provided by Ritrovo Selections.)

Controne beans are an incredibly special bean. This small, round, slightly oval-shaped white bean is an heirloom bean from the Controne Municipality in Salerno (just southeast of Naples). Controne Beans have been listed in the Slow Food Ark of Taste as a bean of cultural importance on the verge of being lost. Controne beans were originally cultivated by Benedictine monks in Salerno.

Serves 4; Preparation Time about 2 ½ hours 

Soup

10 oz. Ritrovo Selections Heirloom Controne “No-Soak” Beans
8 cups Aneto chicken broth
2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 cup carrots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp Ritrovo Selections Truffle & Salt
⅛ tsp crushed red pepper flakes – Ritrovo Link when up on site

Garnish

1 tsp Regalis White Truffle Oil
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Freshly snipped Italian Parsley

Directions

Rinse beans in a colander and transfer to a heavy soup pot. Cover with water, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for one hour.

While the beans are cooking, place 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a heavy skillet, add the chopped onions and sauté until onions are just transparent, about five minutes. Add carrots and garlic and continue to sauté for another five minutes, stirring occasionally, not letting the onions brown. Set aside.

Drain the beans and return to soup pot. Add the sautéed vegetables and 4 cups of chicken broth. Simmer over low heat, add the remaining 4 cups of broth as needed, one cup at a time until the beans are the desired texture, about one and half hours. If more liquid is needed, add additional water, one cup at a time until the beans are tender. Cook a little longer if a creamier texture is desired.

Season with the Truffle & Salt and crushed red pepper flakes.

Ladle into soup bowls, drizzle with white truffle oil, and top with grated Parmigiano Reggiano and snipped parsley. Enjoy with crusty bread and olive oil.

Buon Appetito!